All posts by radiant

Peanut Butter & Chocolate Oats

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Name: Mitchelle Ajida
Class Year: 2008
Country of Residence: UK

Why is this recipe great? What’s its backstory? 

Zimbabweans love peanut butter. We can add it to just about any meal. Peanut butter rice, with peanut butter chicken or peanut butter beef. Peanut butter in our collard greens, on our bread and in our porridge. Peanut butter is a staple. This recipe combines the peanut butter heritage with my life in Europe as I try to keep a taste of home whilst making new breakfast favorites for my international friends.

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Bärlauch/Ramps Pesto with Green Almonds

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Name: Katia deSouza
Class Year: 1999
Country of Residence: Formerly Switzerland, now USA

Why is this recipe great? What’s its backstory? 

Before I moved to Switzerland, I got caught up in the seasonal ramps crazy at the farmers’ market. I really missed them until I discovered the alternative, bärlauch. I then realized that I could forage for them along my favourite running trail in Basel and I knew what I had to do…make pesto. Since I have an allergy to all nuts accept peanuts and almonds, pesto is generally out of reach for me. Green almonds, which are also very seasonal, are a great alternative to pine nuts. But you can easily sub pumpkin seeds for a truly nut free alternative.

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Duck breast with Kumquat sauce

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Name: Tammy Haggard (nee Salazar)
Class Year: 1968
Country of Residence: UK

Note: This recipe is not being entered in the competition, it is simply being shared for you all to enjoy!

Why is this recipe great? What’s its backstory? 

This is a very easy and pleasing recipe, ideal for small dinner parties as carving the duck might take some time. It looks and tastes good!!

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Black Beans

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Name: Kate McElwee
Class Year: 2007
Country of Residence: Italy

Why is this recipe great? What’s its backstory? 

Living in Rome, this is a recipe of necessity. I know, I know, I live in Italy, land of the most cherished pasta and pizza and (okay, everything!) dishes, but sometimes, a girl needs a taco. While you can purchase black beans in a can from speciality import stores, making them at home is not only more economical, it is far more delicious and downright magical. When you transform a hard, little bead of a bean into a juicy, earthy, ticket to another world, you feel incredible.

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Deconstructed Vegetarian Tacos

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Name: Courtney Hopf
Class Year: 2001
Country of Residence: England

Why is this recipe great? What’s its backstory? 

This recipe was born out of a craving for the (completely inauthentic) tacos I ate as a kid and the general dearth of Mexican flavours to be found in the UK.  A few years into my life abroad I found myself desperately wanting an Upstate-NY-backyard-birthday-party taco and discovered I could get Old El Paso taco seasoning mix in my local supermarket.  I have always found crunchy tacos messy and annoying to eat, though, so I decided to turn it into a salad, with the added bonus being I could ramp up the lettuce and tomato content and pretend I was being healthy. 

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Cheesecake with Fresh Berries

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Name: Silvia Maulini*
Class Year: 1980
Country of Residence: The Netherlands

* Silvia is one of this competition’s judges, so this recipe will not be considered – it’s simply delicious, and needs to be shared!

Why is this recipe great? What’s its backstory? 

I have always found most (American) cheesecake recipes rather daunting and alarmingly rich in fats and cream. A few years ago, my daughters and granddaughters gave me a wonderful new cookbook by Cees Holtkamp, whose patisserie in the center of Amsterdam is a true monument to high quality pastries and cakes. His simple, not exceedingly fat and apparently foolproof recipe for cheesecake immediately caught my attention. It seemed too easy to be true, but Cees’ cheesecake turned out to be amazing and it has now become a classic at our family birthday celebrations. This is the cake that has been requested by all family members for our first physical gathering after the lockdown period: I can’t wait to bake a few of them!

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Penne in barca con asparagi selvatici (Penne on the boat with wild asparagus)

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Name: Laura Aimone
Class Year: 2004
Country of Residence: Italy

Why is this recipe great? What’s its backstory? 

This recipe is a mix of some of my fondest memories as a child/teenager. From 6 to 19 years old, I spent my summer holidays with my parents on the island of Elba, in Tuscany. We were renting a tiny panoramic house overlooking the sea in a village with the same people going there year after year. We had also met a local family with a grandma who was a chef and they were often inviting us to their place. They gave us this recipe and it still tastes like sun, sea, Mediterranean summers, youth, dancing under the stars on the beach and friendships.

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Mexican Squash on a Budget

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Name: Sarah Carter
Class Year: 2017
Country of Residence: Ireland

Why is this recipe great? What’s its backstory? 

I recently moved to Ireland to begin my PhD studies. Busy with work and struggling to find the time to go the grocery store, I quickly discovered the joy of grocery home delivery. One time, they accidentally delivered a butternut squash instead of bananas. By the time I noticed the mistake, it was too late. A PhD stipend is not much – and requires one to live frugally, on a budget. I was not about to let any food got to waste. So I dug around in my pantry, found a can of black beans and a few veggies, and – voilà ! The Mexican squash was born. It’s become a regular to cook for dinner – quick to make; very filling; and great for anyone living on a budget!

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Wilma Flinestone’s Chocolate Cake (and/or the Paleo Cake)

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Name: Rossella Di Palma
Class Year: FF 1999
Country of Residence: Italy

Why is this recipe great? What’s its backstory? 

I wanted to make a cute cake for a friend’s birthday: it had to be good looking, easy to make, unusual and easy to personalize. Its flat shape was ideal to place, on the top, a printed image of his dog.  At the party, people were originally suspicious about the cake ingredients, but everybody ended up enjoying it. This cake is grain free and gluten free.

I adapted a recipe I found in “Il Libro d’Oro del Cioccolato” which suggested 300 g of carrots and 150 of sugar.

Note: adding a bit of fresh ginger might be interesting.

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Eggplant & Ginger Jam

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Name: Rossella Di Palma
Class Year: FF 1999
Country of Residence: Italy

Why is this recipe great? What’s its backstory? 

I like ginger a lot and I sometimes eat jam but I do not like it when it gets too sweet. Years ago I found a recipe online that intrigued me. I made several jars and passed the recipe on to relatives and friends, but it was still too sweet. I then completely forgot until last year, when I felt the urge to make some again. Googling online I found another recipe and I further adapted it.

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